ConocoPhillips moves toward shutting down Kenai LNG facility

According to multiple sources, ConocoPhillips, unable to find a buyer for its Kenai natural gas export facility in Alaska, plans to shutter operations until market conditions improve.

The LNG export facility was the first and for a long time the only export plant in the US. The shutdown is expected to get underway this Autumn.

While marketing efforts to sell the facility have been underway since mid-January, and conversations with interested buyers are ongoing, ConocoPhillips has not come to terms with a buyer for the facility.

The plant has been idled for almost two years, with the last export in late 2015, as depressed global LNG prices reduced demand.

The Alaska Gasline Development Corporation, which has taken over the proposed Alaska LNG Project to pipe gas to Asian markets, at one time was said to be interested in taking over Kenai. However, no deal has materialised.